Stardust
by UpAmongTheStars
Summary: "Home is where the heart is." - a collection of drabbles based on some space prompts i got on tumblr! will also include little snippets of my wips, AUs, and favorite headcanons. [ch. 6: lunar / "It's... weird, having control of an element that isn't his, but Boboiboy has sparred with Fang long enough to have an idea of what to do."]
1. endgame

**_The Bishop_**

The holoscreen turns to a friendly green, and even the pain cannot stop her smile; the escape pods made it. A thought echoes in her head, one she's had so many times before, but for once, Ying does not mind if they do not apply to her:

_We still have time._

_**The Rook**_

Gopal grips the ship's controls as he tries to take a shaky breath. The ground looms closer with every second, so he closes his eyes, thinks of a time where he wasn't afraid, and remembers home.

It makes him smile.

_**The Knight**_

He shoves down every doubt he has, every guilty thought and uncertainty, and pushes himself to fight. He forces himself until he can't, until all he can see is the back of a tyrant walking away as the stars look down on him and finally grant him mercy.

When Fang dies, he dies saving his friends, and for him, that is enough.

_**The Queen**_

"Go," Yaya whispers, and Ochobot does.

Once the powersphere is gone, she turns back to meet a cruel, emerald gaze. She sees the rage burning in them and it fuels her determination, the gravity around them tripling as the ground finally gives way.

(They fall.)

Like a hero would, she dies with a sacrifice.

_**The King**_

In all the times they've had to fight, Boboiboy never really knew what would happen. He did not think about it much, preferred to keep the thoughts locked away with a heart that longs for a planet of greens and blues.

But this time, cornered in a forest of purple and red, he knows.

(Boboiboy dies in the shadows, but he knows the light will find him.

It always does.)

* * *

Prompt-

[ Black Hole: _What's the last thing you want to see?_ ]


	2. collateral

_**Arm**_

Fang clutches his arm tighter to himself - or, well, as much as he can without being obvious. Yaya has been throwing him glances ever since they left the shop, and if there's one thing that makes him nervous, it's Yaya being extra observant.

He's lost in his thoughts that he doesn't notice the alien until it bumps his arm and draws a pained hiss from him.

Boboiboy shoots him a concerned look. "Are you - "

"I'm fine," Fang huffs.

(He wasn't.)

_**Leg**_

The second he tries to stand, pain shoots up his leg. Boboiboy is saved from the floor by Yaya, who's quick to ask, "What's wrong?"

"I'm… not sure," Boboiboy frowns, and lets Ying take his other side. With the extra help, he allows himself to slightly move his foot again and winces at the weak throb it gives. "I think something's broken?"

"It might be your leg," Ying pipes up, giving the limb a once-over. "You took a hard landing before the last fireball."

_**Ribs**_

"Yaya!"

"Ying!" Yaya smiles and waves a little at her friend, who immediately bounds over to her bed. She puts her book down - one of the many volumes about the 27th quadrant - and asks, "How'd the mission go? You're okay, right?"

"Am I okay?" Ying glosses over the first question to stare in disbelief. "Yaya, you passed out!"

"It can't be that bad?"

"You broke two of your ribs."

"…oh."

_**Calvicle**_

She doesn't realize she's screaming until Fang finally unfreezes to help stabilize her arm. Beside her, Gopal is panicking, still fumbling for the scanner they keep deep inside the emergency first-aid kit. It takes a few moments for him to successfully find it and -

"Calvicle," Fang reads, and between trying to catch her breath and not passing out, Ying wonders at how he seems to turn even paler.

"Is it bad?" Gopal asks, eyes darting between them.

"No, it's - not always, but it's definitely a lot of pain," Fang explains. "Ying is going to need a sling, and she needs it right now." He types a message on his watch, mindful to keep the occupied arm stable, before turning to her and asking, "Help will be here in five. Are you - can you stay like this 'til then?"

"Of course," Ying sighs, and settles for the wait.

_**? ? ?**_

Barely dodging the meteors, Gopal tries to scramble for proper cover when he trips and lands just beyond the clearing. His fall causes him time, and he watches as a meteor lands on his hand and makes his fear skyrocket.

Except the pressure disappears, and Gopal finds himself pulling on his now-rubber arm from below the giant rock and automatically diving for the creepy cave by what looks like a demolished mountain.

He takes a moment to breathe, before pulling up his apparently-not-crushed arm. It's back to normal now, but just in case, Gopal hesitantly prods at it until he's sure that yes, none of his bones are broken, because apparently he was scared enough to transform a single limb.

Superhero perks and all that.

* * *

Prompt-

[ Canopus: _Have you ever broken a bone?_ ]


	3. serendipity

_**alarm clock**_

Boboiboy wakes up to the smell of fried rice.

Slowly, he makes his way down to the kitchen, all the while trying to rub the sleep from his eyes. He's still tired - always is these days, really - but like that's going to make him miss his favorite meal of the day.

"Good morning."

Tok Aba greets him with a warm smile as he enters, and Boboiboy could never stop the grin it prompts from him.

"Morning," he says around a yawn, before settling on his usual spot and basking in the silence an early morning provides. It's warm and nice, and Boboiboy thinks about how this is the most content he's ever been in his life.

He'd do anything to stay like this forever.

_**chef's orders**_

"Chili powder, cardamom, cayenne pepper, turmeric, curry powder - "

" - and cinnamon," Gopal finishes, handing his dad a cinnamon stick.

His dad says a quick thanks, turning back to the pot as he muses, "We might need a little water."

"Oh! Right, right."

Gopal grabs a small cup of water along with a spoon, depositing them near the stove before going back to chopping the extra peppers. When he's done, he slides them across the counter, followed by the vegetables, coconut milk, and cumin powder.

It's routine, cooking like this with his dad, and Gopal relishes in the familiarity after being stuck for who-knows-how-long in space.

(It was almost a month; twenty-three days, eleven hours, forty-eight minutes and… sixteen seconds. Not that Gopal's counting or anything.)

Before he knows it, he's passing the chicken they prepared earlier and watching as his dad lets the dish simmer. He must have spaced out because his dad suddenly catches his eye and grins, saying, "Feels like a perfect curry, right?"

Gopal grins back and gives an enthusiastic nod.

"Of course!"

_**aftermath**_

Fang slips inside the control room, eyes searching before it lands on the single figure inside.

"Captain."

Kaizo glances at him from the corner of his eye, before turning back to the holoscreens hovering in front of him. "Fang," he starts, flicking a few of them aside before focusing on a familiar one - Fang's latest mission. "Report."

Fang takes a breath.

Then, he begins.

"Sir, mission to Planet Kael was accomplished at 19:00 hours, S.Q.T. The objective was confirmed: a powersphere with the abilities to change the user's appearance on command. It's user was General Morex, a military officer turned bounty hunter after his exile."

Kaizo hums. "Casualties?"

"None," Fang answers. "We engaged with a few hostiles, but managed to get away."

"I see."

There's a pause where Fang's exhaustion threatens to swallow him, and he wonders if something's wrong, did he make a mistake in his report,_ was there something he -_

"You're dismissed."

"Thank you, captain," Fang replies, barely managing to hold in a sigh. He's almost out the door when a call of his name stops him.

"Go visit the medbay," Kaizo says, and Fang almost misses the way his gaze flickers to his foot. He thought he was hiding it well, but - "And take the twins with you," the other adds, almost like an afterthought that Fang can't help the flicker of something - surprise, gratefulness, hope - in his chest.

His lips twitch into a small smile.

"Yes, captain."

_**hearth and heart**_

"I'm home."

The voice is followed by the sound of a door being closed, and Yaya is quick to place the pan down so she can go and greet her mom. She rounds the corner just as her mom places her bags away, expression morphed into a tired but gentle smile.

When arms spread in invitation, she wastes no time melting into the hug.

"Welcome back," Yaya says against her mom's shoulder. She feels more than hears the soft chuckle that gets, relishing in how it makes her feel lighter before pulling away to let her mom sit on the sofa.

"I just finished dinner," she folds her hands behind her, watching as her mom practically sinks into the cushions. "I'll set the plates and then we can all eat together?"

A bright smile answers her.

"Yes, please. And thank you."

_**up above**_

Ying isn't all that surprised when she finds her grandmother outside again.

Quietly, she makes her way towards her, making sure not to trip on anything as she settles herself by her feet. They stay like that for a while, both looking up at stars that look so, so bright in the clear suburban sky.

Her grandmother breaks the silence first.

"The last time I saw stars this bright, I was only nineteen." There's so much wonder in her voice that Ying finds herself staring at the woman, thinking about how different life could be back in their home country.

"Really?"

"Yes."

They'd left before she was ever born, so she has nothing to miss, not really. But sometimes, she can't help but wonder what it would be like to live there, to experience life in the place most of her family did.

Truthfully, her grandmother's expression makes this place seem - not better, but a good kind of different, the kind that's like alternating between two of your favorite snacks. But for Ying, this place has always been home, and while some part of her wants to see something different, most of her is just… content.

"It's beautiful," she says.

Her grandmother looks down to smile at her.

"It is."

* * *

Prompt-

[ Quasar: _If you could spend the rest of your life with only one person, who would it be?_ ]


	4. end simulation

_**simulation 1.194**_

" - and there, that's how you get the answer."

Yaya turns back to see varying degrees of awe in her tutees faces and has to stifle a laugh.

Teaching has always been something she'd wanted to do, and while the thought of spreading knowledge is still her prime motivator, the looks she gets from kids that make it seem like she just handed them a pile of candy is coming up to a close second.

So she settles for a smile as the kids start working on the rest of their exercises. One of them is still staring at her, though, but before she can ask, the kid beats her to it.

"How are you so good at this?"

His expression is - it's a look she's familiar with as a hero, but never as a tutor, and something in her warms at the thought. She walks closer and crouches down so they're eye to eye, before ruffling his hair and murmuring, "I've had a lot of practice. If you do that, too, I'm sure you'll be even better."

"Really?" he asks, eyes shining with so much hope, and Yaya's smile brightens.

"Really."

_**simulation 2.937**_

Gopal makes a good show of pulling the bag from under the table, before presenting it with a flourish.

Boboiboy laughs, which was the whole point of the present, and Gopal feels a little relieved that his cheering up process still works. He puts on his best look of mock hurt and whines, "Hey, stop that! I go all the way to bring you a present because you were sad, and this is what I get?"

"S-Sorry," Boboiboy says, trying to hide his grin. He's not very successful.

"Wow," Gopal huffs in exasperation, crossing his arms and being as ridiculous as possible. He grins when Boboiboy chokes, still playing along but barely holding it together because Gopal's just that good, apparently.

It takes Boboiboy a while, but he finally manages to catch his breath enough to give Gopal a proper smile.

"Thank you for this, but you really didn't have to," he says as Gopal shoves the bag towards him. Gopal just waves him off.

"It's fine, just open it!"

"Okay, okay," he huffs, rolling his eyes a little before pulling the bag open and peeking inside. Gopal watches with a triumphant grin as the other's eyes widen, and then he's suddenly being tackled by an excited friend who's showering him with a hundred 'thank you's and exclamations.

"You're giving me the latest Galaxy Garrison installment?!"

"Uh, yes?"

"Why?"

"Well, you were upset and video games make you feel better, so - "

"Gopal," Boboiboy deadpans, "You literally just bought a whole clothes store for Yaya and Ying last week."

"It wasn't that many!" Gopal argues. "Besides," he mumbles, "I owe you guys a lot, so it's the least I can do." Boboiboy gives him a look, but before he can say anything, Gopal starts nudging him towards his house.

"Now come on, I wanna try the game, too!"

"Okay, okay! But - Gopal?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks."

"No problem."

_**simulation 3.712**_

"Um, before I do this," Boboiboy starts tentatively, "You have to _promise_ \- "

"What the hell - "

" - _promise_ that you won't... panic."

Boboiboy doesn't really have the right word for this because he doesn't know how Fang will react, but -

"Boboiboy," Fang says, his current expression the one he usually saves for the field, "What's wrong."

It's not a question, and they both know it, so Boboiboy takes a breath before quickly placing the item between them and saying, "Here." Both of them look down at his powerwatch, and for a moment, he thinks the other has stopped breathing.

A few seconds pass before Fang manages a quiet, "What?"

And Boboiboy was right, because there's panic edging at the other's tone, so before everything gets more confusing, he finally decides to say - "It's not broken, or anything. It's just… I wanted to give it back, I guess."

He looks up and suddenly wishes he hadn't.

"Why?"

Fang looks at him like he was just betrayed, and isn't that a little ironic, but then - "I don't need it anymore."

When Fang's expression crumples further - _he's hurt, you hurt him, this was **a bad idea**_ \- he looks back down and explains softly, "I - Earth is safe now. We made sure of that, and - and I wanted to take a break. I just realized how we took it for granted back when we were fourteen, so I…"

He trails off, unsure of how to explain it, how to make Fang understand that he just wants -

"Okay."

Boboiboy snaps his head up in surprise, startled enough that his hand almost knocks off a mug. "Okay?"

"Mm," Fang hums, poking at the orange watch. He's smiling, but it's small and bittersweet, like he knew this was coming but still wished it wouldn't. "I kind of get it. The whole superhero thing is - "

"Really tiring?" Boboiboy offers.

"Really tiring," Fang repeats with a quiet laugh as he finally looks at him. "You, of all people, deserve a break from it," he says, tone sincere as he takes the watch and spares a glance at it. His face darkens a little, and he murmurs, "I guess I just…"

He shakes his head and pockets the watch, but Boboiboy knows him enough to finish the thought.

"I'm not going anywhere, you know." Boboiboy smiles when Fang sighs; he nailed that one on the head. "I'll always be ready to help," he adds, shrugging when Fang raises a brow at him. "You guys know where to find me."

Fang gives him a long look, but finally relents, shoulders drooping a little as he says, "Okay."

"…"

"…"

"Fang?"

"Yeah?"

"Keep it safe?"

Fang rolls his eyes before getting up and saying, "As if there was any other option."

Boboiboy just grins at him and waves as he leaves.

_**simulation 4.289**_

Ceremony done with, Fang is stuck in a daze he's not sure he wants to leave. He's pretty sure he's somewhere between throwing up and collapsing on the floor, or maybe both. He thinks it shows on his face, but that doesn't stop Yaya from bounding towards him for the obligatory 'congratulations!'

"You look like you're dying."

...not what he expected, but he'd take it.

"I _feel_ like I'm dying," Fang mumbles, letting Yaya pat him in attempted comfort. "How long until they get here?"

"About an hour," she says after a quick glance at her watch. "Gopal apparently made them stop for snacks."

He rolls his eyes at that. "Why am I not surprised?"

It doesn't matter that much anyway, it's just a ceremony. Fang breezes through the other people that offer him praise and best wishes, Yaya having stepped back a polite distance to let him have his time. Really, the only people he wants to celebrate his promotion with are his friends, and maybe -

"Fang," a familiar - _too familiar, he'd know that voice anywhere_ \- voice calls, and Fang turns to see his br- Kaizo approaching him. Internally wincing at the correction, he steels himself for this conversation.

"General," he salutes out of habit, but Kaizo waves it off.

"The promotion suits you," he says, and Fang has to stop himself from freezing at the way his brother's head tilts, eyes sharp and expression pensive. It's so reminiscent of how he looks when he's scheming that Fang has to remind himself where he is, he's not in the ship, _he's not going to be left again -_

"You'd do well as a captain."

"I - " Fang internally flounders for a reply, idly noticing how Yaya seems to be closer now. "Thank you."

If Kaizo notices the slight question in his tone, he doesn't mention it. Instead, he gives a nod, lips quirking into a slight smirk as he stalks off with the officer that's been trying to get his attention. Before he gets too far, he calls back over his shoulder, "I'll see you at the meeting, Captain."

Fang barely manages a nod.

_What?_

_**simulation 5.065**_

_"How is it there?"_

Ying hums, pretending to ponder it over as she fiddles with her mask. She'd been too tired to remove it earlier, opting to crash on the bed with all her layers still on, when her phone rang with the call.

She didn't have to look to know who it was.

"It's busy," she starts, predictably getting an exasperated huff. It makes her grin. "But it's nice. Gives me something to focus on, so the work's not that bad. Although," she looks up and out her window, "I do wish I could see the sky."

_"Is it too dark there?"_ Yaya asks.

"No, I mean - " Ying sits up so she can lean closer to the glass, eyes squinting up at a pitch black sky. "There aren't any stars."

_"…oh."_

"Yeah."

They're quiet for a while, before Yaya says, _"You can see Orion here."_

"Really?" Ying whispers, chest tight with a longing she hasn't felt in years. Yaya hums, starting to list off all the visible constellations - Boboiboy had rubbed off on all of them - and before long it was past midnight, the conversation having devolved into sleepy mumbles and stifled yawns.

_"We should sleep,"_ Yaya murmurs from her end, and Ying nods until she realizes Yaya can't see her and replies with a quiet, 'right.'

_"Goodnight Ying,"_ the other says, and Ying can hear the smile in her voice, _"We'll see you soon."_

The last statement jolts her back into awareness, and Ying knows the call has been ended but all she can think about is how she misses the stars. She misses them and she misses her friends, misses having hot chocolate that makes her feel warm instead of empty.

She misses _home._

Heart pounding in her ears, Ying tugs her mask back on and heads for the door.

It's about time she went back.

* * *

Prompt-

[ Supernova: _What's one thing you want to do before you die?_ ]


	5. wip: to breathe, to live

The problem is that he is an ordinary boy who isn't so ordinary, because fate thought to grant him powers that he never really needed.

People don't _know _his name but then they do, and he's showered with attention he never really wanted, the kind that demands attention _back_. And Boboiboy doesn't really have much of a choice, because he is ten and nobody ever told him that he's allowed to say no, because he's a hero, only he was a kid first, because it's his responsibility but then _isn't it my life, too?_

The problem is that there are days where everyone wants something from him, and he _wants _to help but then doesn't know _how_. He's stuck in a world that asks for many but gives back a few, and no one ever told him he's allowed to stop for a world that won't stop for him. There are days when he will forget to sleep, and days where he forgets that he forgets to sleep, and days where he finally remembers because those are the days that he finally gets to.

The problem is that he is ten and he doesn't have much to give, but he knows if people ask the world of him, he'd give them the whole galaxy.


	6. lunar

For half a second, he's covered in bright, purple light.

And then the shadows yield to him, and Boboiboy strikes.

It's... weird, having control of an element that isn't his, but Boboiboy has sparred with Fang long enough to have an idea of what to do. He doesn't summon the shadow animals, or anything else in between. The darkness shifts, and Boboiboy lets it wrap around his limbs, lets it take on the familiar feel of being solid as he uses them to aid his movements. He gives it everything, just like he always has, but some part of him knows a losing battle when it sees one.

The bow appears in his hands before he realizes.

And maybe it's because of the light, maybe it's because of the thought that this is Fang, this is his, that gives him enough of a kick to trust his heart for once. Boboiboy pauses to draw his hand, the bow humming to life in a glint of silver and purple, and watches as the sky forms in the shape of an arrow.

He takes a breath.

"Shadow Prison."

In the light of a dying planet, a streak of shadow flies and lands just past the enemy's feet.

Boboiboy knows it's not a miss.

He turns back before the yells start, can already feel the pull of the cage as it keeps the enemy locked, and rushes to save Fang.

* * *

a/n: really old au where boboiboy uses fang's watch and gains shadow powers. never got to post it back then, so here you guys go! owo)/


End file.
